What should I get? A new bass, or an amp?

[hrodbert696]

Originally Posted by najko

Obviously that is the best choice! Anyway, if I ever get the bigger one, that's 180W@8ohm from the head going to a 300W@8ohm cab. Does that mean that the cab will only take 180W? What about the remaining 120W? Are they used?

300W is the cab's capacity; the cab doesn't generate any power, it just handles what the amp head throws at it. So yes, you'll be underpowering your cab by 120W. Like a container that could hold 300 ml of water but is only 180 ml filled - the other 120 doesn't exist. That won't do it any harm, just means that it won't be as loud as it could be if you had an amp that put out 300W at 8 ohms.

[najko]

But if I got the smaller head it would underpower the cab much more. I guess that if I ever decide to upgrade I would get a better head, as the cab can still hold a much more powerful head.

However, 180W is powerful enough, I mean, it's nine times the power of my current amp or twice our PA.

Also my bandmates's guitar amp is 65W actually, not 130W. I guess I'll blow them away on next rehearsal...

[hrodbert696]

Originally Posted by najko

But if I got the smaller head it would underpower the cab much more. I guess that if I ever decide to upgrade I would get a better head, as the cab can still hold a much more powerful head.

However, 180W is powerful enough, I mean, it's nine times the power of my current amp or twice our PA.

Also my bandmates's guitar amp is 65W actually, not 130W. I guess I'll blow them away on next rehearsal...

Probably not. Bass notes have much longer wavelengths, so they don't "penetrate" the ear as easily as higher notes. Guitarists sound a lot louder on a lot less wattage. 180 watts of bass against 65 watts of guitar - you'll probably be able to keep up as long as your guitarist doesn't really crank it. Of course, it also depends on the speakers - 180 watts through a 4x10 will give you a lot more than through a 2x10, while on his side it will make a big difference if his 65 are through a 1x10 or a 2x12.

[jlepre]

Why not look used? I mean Berhinger is pretty much garbage. You get what you pay for, and you'll get a much better return on investment if you buy used.

[najko]

Originally Posted by jlepre

Why not look used? I mean Berhinger is pretty much garbage. You get what you pay for, and you'll get a much better return on investment if you buy used.

As I said, noone sells used in my country, and if they do, they overprice it (meaning they even sell used stuff for more than it costs new).

[jlepre]

Ahhhhh sorry I must've missed that info.

[jlepre]

Also what bass are you using? I would definitely look for an amp, and get your current bass set up properly. See how things sound then.

[najko]

Hi there, after all your advice on this thread, I have made up my mind, and after much search and thought I've come across THIS awesome amplifier which meets all I was looking for (affordable, powerful and lightweight).

Now I have a few questions about it:
Are its 200W @ 4ohm or 8ohm? or in the case of a combo this doesn't matter at all?

And whenever I feel like I want to upgrade, how could I do so? Can I add a cab directly to the output? Any other considerations?

In case you're wondering, this is the info on the GK MB115 provided on its website:

One 15-inch Paragon high-sensitivity ceramic speaker
200 watts into the internal speaker
23” x 19” x 14”
35 pounds

I think that this is it, I've been dealing with this for too long already and I had to decide. Do you think it's a good choice? What would you have gone for if you had such amount of money to spend?

And finally, thanks again to everyone who helped out!

[::::BASSIST::::]

Definitely a good choice. However, this combo is limited to 4 ohms at 200w and WILL NOT take an extension speaker. Meaning you will never be able to add a second driver. Adding a second driver is very important as it will increase your vol output dramatically.

Other than that it should a great choice. GK is reliable and alot better than those budget brands.

Check out the GK MB210, which gives 350 at 8 ohms and 500w at 4 and will take an extension cab. However, something tells me its going to be more money.

[najko]

Originally Posted by ::::BASSIST::::

Definitely a good choice. However, this combo is limited to 4 ohms at 200w and WILL NOT take an extension speaker. Meaning you will never be able to add a second driver. Adding a second driver is very important as it will increase your vol output dramatically.

Other than that it should a great choice. GK is reliable and alot better than those budget brands.

I understand. I don't think I will need to extend it anyways, at least until I make some money off music. Also, over an awfully heavy 300W Behringher combo I think this 200W amp cuts it in a pretty lightweight way.

Originally Posted by ::::BASSIST::::

Check out the GK MB210, which gives 350 at 8 ohms and 500w at 4 and will take an extension cab. However, something tells me its going to be more money.

I already looked it up and it's obviously more money. Even if I could buy it I really don't need any further power right now.

[hrodbert696]

I'd agree that the GK is a good choice. They don't bother listing ohms because the amp and speaker are already matched and you don't need to worry about it. My Ampeg combo puts 220 watts into a 1x15 - basically the same as this - and it holds up great in a band setting. Glad you found something that works!

[eddododo]

A hartke ha3500 is easily findable cheap, and alott of bang per buck

Edit: the combo with the ha3500, I.should say


GK is a big +1 as well

[Standalone]

it's the amp that makes the gig.

[C.Linton]

Amp, and maybe a setup.

[dcalde78]

I started off in the exact same way, with that same exact kit. The bass is absolute crap. The truss rod in mine is frozen and was out of the box. I managed to make it work for a while and the first thing I did when I got enough money was upgrade my bass. Luckily, everything has worked out for me amp wise. I bought the Harley Benton HBW-80, and I've used it twice to gig with but it's been driven pretty hard. At practice with my old band, the singer brought an amp for me which was more powerful than that one that comes with the pack. As for bigger gigs, I've been blessed with being able to use an Ashdown 2x10, an old Peavey head and 4x10 and an Ampeg SVT-6 Pro. The Ashdown and Ampeg belong to the local arts company and the Peavey belongs to the bassist of a local band (it's been to hell and back by the looks of it, still works).

I've still not upgraded my amp further, which isn't the best course of action but I have had no real need to so far. I do plan to get a small head/cab setup though.

The best course of action for you first is to upgrade the amp to something more powerful. The bass can wait because as long as it's playable, it'll do. Particularly so if you're not gigging. As soon as you have enough cash however, drop it on a Squier Classic Vibe or Vintage Modified (best bang for buck basses in the lower end, in my opinion).

[backup]

i have a squier VM and i upgraded my amp to an ampeg pf rig and i dont regret it. i came to love my cheap bass much more and damn im loud

[Munjibunga]

Amp.

[najko]

The GK MB115 arrived today! Damn, I didn't expect it to be so big and heavy, but it sure has the power. The sound just can't be compared to plugging directly the bass into the PA: it's got a lot of growl and lows (everything on the room starts buzzing), and it's got neat well-defined highs. It has pretty much everything I'll ever need.

About the bass, well, I bought a cleaning product that's brought it back to life (both the wood and the strings). Taking into account that the strings were six months old it's surprising how they're bright again, I'm very happy with it. I will probably give another go into fixing it (now adjusting the truss rod too) and stick with it for a little longer.

Thanks everyone!